When God Gives Your Heart a 180-Degree Twist

Three years ago our senior adult ministry from church went on an outing to a country store in a nearby town. I was fairly new to the church, and must admit, I felt a bit out of place. At the time, I was one of the youngest senior adults in the group. For some of us, it's hard to come to grips with being considered a "senior". You know, I had this preconceived image of being one step from a nursing home or the grave.

Okay, back to the country store. They provided a generous sampling of their many foods for sale for a nominal fee. They also offered coffee and iced tea. Since my coffee limit is about one cup per week, I had tea. I took a seat and a gentleman about 20+ years my senior took the seat next to me. I was casually acquainted with him from church. Actually, when we began attending he was one of the first people to introduce himself and remember our names.

I ate my small plate of food and we talked awhile. As I was finishing my iced tea, he said his coffee was still too hot. He then reached into my cup and took an ice cube and put it in his coffee cup. I was mortified! Of course, I didn't say anything, but I soon proceeded to the trash can with my cup and got another. I am ashamed to say, I also returned to another seat.

That one small incident had suddenly changed how I felt about the man. His social misstep made me think less of him for a time. But then God began to work in my heart. It is a funny memory about which I can now laugh. Sometimes senior adults do and say inappropriate things. Truly, all people say and do inappropriate things at times. But with senior adults, you just don't know if dementia may be rearing its ugly head. The disease can afflict rich, poor, doctors, college professors, and housewives like my mom.

I don't know if my "ice poacher" has the beginnings of dementia, but I do know that over the past three years his health has declined rapidly. He has had several falls and is reluctantly using a walker. He now usually calls me by my best friend's name. I care about him. I worry because he is widowed, lonely, and lives alone. I miss him when he is not at church and seek him out when he is. If he needed an ice cube for his coffee, I would gladly give him mine.

What changed? It was me. God gave my heart a 180-degree twist.  He does things like that.

Copyright 2017
Laney's Musings